Psychological Testing and Assessments
You may be wondering, what is psychological testing used for and what is an assessment? The terms "testing" and "assessment" are often used interchangably but there is a big difference. Testing refers to the actual test being taken, which may be administered on a computer or by pen and paper. It usually involves answering questions about your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. The tests I use are all highly reliable and proven to be as accurate as possible.
Assessment refers to the interpretation of the results and should only be done by highly trained professionals. It is essential that test results be accurately interpreted. Dr. McCoy has over 20 years of experience in psychological testing, interpretation, and practical applications of test results.
One of the great advantages of psychological testing is that the therapist can obtain a breadth of information in a short period of time that will save valuable hours in counseling. The more that is known, the more tailored and effective the treatment can be for each unique individual.
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1
Personality Tests
There are several types of personality tests, each with strengths and weaknesses. They are designed to elicit information about a person's motivations, preferences, interests, emotional make-up, and style of interacting with people and situations. Your personality test might not tell you a lot you didn't already know about yourself, a common reaction is "Oh, that's why I do things that way!" A deeper understanding of your personality is invaluable to understanding and improving your relationship with others, and can help you gain insight to help you achieve your goals. I have found that personality tests are valuable aids to improving relationships.
2
Intelligence Testing
Intelligence tests measure IQ, and can also be used to measure mental or developmental learning disabilities. Intelligence testing and learning disability testing can usually be done by school counselors, but some school districts do not have that option available.
3
Mood/ Psychopathology Testing
This kind of testing can be very short, and serve as a quick check-up to measure anxiety, depression, or PTSD, for example. If a person is receiving therapy for one of those issues, the therapist may give these tests periodically to check on improvement and to see how well the treatment is working. Other kinds of testing are longer and give a more accurate measure of what kinds of issues the client is struggling with and be of great assistance to therapist to know what kinds of treatment to use for the best outcomes.
4
Court -ordered Psychological Evaluations
Courts may order persons involved in various kinds of cases to have a psychological evaluation. These evaluations are tailored to the type of case and what issues are being examined by the court. An evaluation involves gathering a thorough history and several tests, depending on the case. Dr. McCoy has been involved in performing hundreds of court-ordered evaluations and has experience and competence in presenting the findings in court.
